Easter Sunday (also known as Resurrection Day) is the most important day of the year for Christians, as it is the celebration of Jesus Christ being resurrected from the dead. Even though it’s a Christian holiday, non-religious people also enjoy the day. There are many traditions associated with the celebration of Easter, both religious and secular.
For the religious, Easter Sunday follows a period of forty days of penance and sacrifice known as Lent, which begins with Ash Wednesday. Holy Week is the final week of Lent, and Palm Sunday is the first day of Holy Week. Many churches distribute palm leaves on Palm Sunday in remembrance of the palm fronds spread before Christ as he entered the city of Jerusalem to celebrate the Jewish Passover. Maundy Thursday commemorates Jesus’ last supper with his disciples. Many Christians fast or eat no meat on Good Friday, which was the day that Jesus died. On Easter Sunday, some churches hold sunrise services outdoors. Passion plays dramatize the Easter story. With Lent officially over, families and friends gather for an Easter meal.
The numerous secular traditions of Easter include: Easter eggs, Easter egg trees, Easter baskets, Easter bonnets, Easter parades, Easter brunch, and Easter egg hunts. The custom of exchanging eggs in the springtime was already centuries old when Easter was first celebrated by Christians. Eggs were wrapped in gold leaf if you were wealthy or, if you were a peasant, colored brightly by boiling them with the leaves or petals of certain flowers. In some places, children roll eggs down a long hill. The child whose eggs lasts the longest without cracking, wins.
As with almost all holidays, Easter has become very commercialized. There are plastic eggs, chocolate bunnies and candy galore. The symbols associated with Easter, however, are not necessarily modern fabrications. From earliest times, the egg was a symbol of rebirth in most cultures. The Easter bunny originated with the pagan Easter festival, since it was a rabbit that represented the goddess, Eastre. Lambs link the death of Christ to that of the lamb sacrificed on the first Passover. The cross is the symbol of the crucifixion, as well as the official symbol of Christianity. Easter lilies represent the purity of new life.
Above we’ve summarized quite a few fun facts about Easter, but there are lots more. Check out the below infographic from UK-based Publicity Services, which features a bunch of Easter fun facts that we didn’t know!
